Salome softball tops Antelope Union 8-3 in key conference win

Salome's softball team turned a familiar matchup into a stronger statement Friday, beating Antelope Union 8-3 and backing up an earlier 24-21 road win over the Rams. For a small La Paz County program in 1A West, the result was more than a tidy conference win, it showed Salome can beat a regional opponent twice in one season and do it with enough margin to control the game late.

The Frogs have found a rhythm at the right time. MaxPreps reported the victory was Salome's fifth in its last six games, and the win lifted the season record to 7-10-1. Just as important for a program that had been 1-8 in its previous nine meetings with Antelope Union, the 8-3 final suggested this was not a fluke or a one-run escape. Salome built a cushion and protected it down the stretch, a sign the lineup produced when it had to and the defense kept the Rams from turning the game into another high-scoring chase.

The matchup carried extra weight because the teams had already met on March 18 at Antelope Union High School District's campus in Wellton, where Salome won 24-21. The rematch at Salome High School, 67488 East Salome Road, gave the Frogs another chance to prove that earlier win was part of a larger trend. AZPreps365 lists Salome in the 2025-2026 1A West alignment with head coach Brooke Stacy, while MaxPreps lists B. Stacy as head coach and Juan Ruelas and O. Avila as assistant coaches.

In a county where school sports often double as community events, the timing matters too. Salome High School said its last home baseball and softball game would be Friday, April 24, followed by senior night, so the win over Antelope Union landed in the final stretch of the spring schedule. That gives the Frogs a recent result they can carry into the closing week, and for a small school that has to squeeze production from every roster spot, an 8-3 conference win over a familiar rival is the kind of performance that can change how the rest of the season feels.